All in the same boat? Differences in employment experience and risks during the first wave of the covid-19 pandemic in croatia1

Matković, T.; Lucić, M.

Experience of work amidst the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic was subject to disruptions for most of the employed. According to results of the initial wave of a panel survey research (SOCRES project) conducted between August 20 and October 2 2020, ana-lysed in this paper, six out of seven employed in Croatia encountered some of the observed workplace-related events (furlough, reduced workload, receiving state wage subsidies, working from home, disrupted work-life balance, wage reduction). We grouped the employed respondents into six segments considering epidemiological restrictions and support measures directly affecting the labour market. We examined differences in the incidence of disruptive events, in particular the disrupted work-life balance and reduction in wage and household income. We also examined differences in the perception of situation, contact with the virus, and self-reported health deterioration. Sociodemographic traits (education level, household type and composition, age, gender) and the role of wage subsidies were accounted for in explaining the variation in outcomes. Few inequalities between employment segments were found beyond those obviously arising from interventions. We found adverse effects of disruptive workplace events on earnings, perception of the situation and self-reported health deterioration. A drop in earnings occurred most often among the self-employed and disrupted work-life balance among educators and healthcare workers. Broad state support via wage subsidy amounting close to minimum wage reassured workers, yet was insufficient to compensate. The necessity of robust and effective lockdown-proof public education and care services came to fore during the initial wave of the pandemic, as all the workers had to engage in providing those within the family, leading to increasing work-life balance challenges. © 2021 Institut za društvena istraživanja u Zagrebu – Institute for Social Research in Zagreb Sva prava pridržana – All rights reserved.